HOW TO OPEN ANDCLOSE A

TED TALK(or any other speech or

presentation)

by AKASH KARIA,Bestselling Author of “How to Deliver a Great TED Talk”

http://amzn.to/16bo6h0

© 2013 by Akash Karia

All rights reserved.

The following two chapters are from my bestselling book, “How to Deliver aGreat TED Talk” (which was previously titled “How to Deliver the Perfect TED

Talk”). The two chapters are provided as a sample taster. If you enjoy the taster,you’ll love the full book. In any case, this mini eBook can still be enjoyed withouthaving to buy the full book because it covers the topics of how to open an end a

TED talk.

www.AkashKaria.com

Here are the TwoMost Important Parts

of Your Talk...If you’ve watched TED Talks (www.Ted.com), you’ve no doubt been inspired andenchanted by speeches by figures such as Sir Ken Robinson, Jill Bolte Taylor,Simon Sinek and Dan Pink.

In this short eBook, you will discover how to:

● Hook your audience into your speech with your opening. Learn five toolsto capture your audience’s attention within the first thirty seconds of yourspeech. You will be learning from the speeches of speakers such as SimonSinek, Susan Cain and Sir Ken Robinson.

● End your speech in a memorable manner. What’s the best way to endyour TED talk? In the second section of this book, you will discover sixproven techniques to close your TED talk (or any other speech orpresentation) in a powerful and persuasive manner.

Arguably, the opening and closing of your presentation are two of the mostimportant parts of the presentation. While this is a short book, it covers theessentials of how to open and close your TED talk (or any other speech orpresentation).

Ready to learn how to create powerful speech openings and closings? Then let’sget started...

Akash Kariawww.AkashKaria.com

How to Open YourTED Talk (or any

other presentation)After having studied more than 200 TED talks, I have found that there are fiveways you can open your speech that are proven to capture your audience’sattention:

1. START WITH A STORY

The best speakers are master storytellers. They tell touching tales, usingcompelling stories as a means to solidify their message. A well-told story willalways be remembered.

A story is a great way to open your speech, but it also works just as well as acloser. In fact, according to Bill Gove, the first president of the National SpeakersAssociation, the essence of public speaking is to “tell a story, [and] make apoint.”

In her popular TED talk (http://bit.ly/10gmj3t) on the power of introverts, SusanCain hooked her audience into her speech by immediately diving into a personalstory:

“When I was nine years old I went off to summer camp for the first time.And my mother packed me a suitcase full of books, which to me seemed likea perfectly natural thing to do. Because in my family, reading was theprimary group activity. And this might sound antisocial to you, but for us itwas really just a different way of being social. You have the animal warmthof your family sitting right next to you, but you are also free to go roamingaround the adventureland inside your own mind. And I had this idea thatcamp was going to be just like this, but better...”

See, you’re curious to find out more about her camping experience, aren’t you?

The reason a story is a superb opening strategy is because:

● Stories captivate people: Everyone loves a good story, so starting witha story will capture your audience’s attention. The moment you beginwith a story, your audience will have no choice but to tune in.

● Stories create connections between the listeners and the speaker: Apersonal story will arouse emotions in the listeners. Studies have shownthat our brains cannot tell the difference between “real” events andimagination. Therefore, when you tell a story, your audience will imagineit and “feel” the same emotions that you’re describing. Your story will notbe forgotten because your audience will “experience” it rather than justhear it.

● Stories are memorable: We are hard-wired to learn through stories.Scientific research has shown that we make sense of the world throughstories. People even view their lives as a story, with a beginning, amiddle and an end, and with each new experience being regarded as a“new chapter” in their lives. Because of this natural hard-wiring, we mayforget statistics and fancy charts, but we will always remember theessential elements of a good story.

Since stories are such an important tool in effective communication, you willdiscover the essentials of great storytelling in a later chapter. These secrets willallow you to become a master storyteller and speaker, entertaining your friends aswell as your audiences.

2. USE QUESTIONS TO CREATE KNOWLEDGE GAPS

Starting with a question creates a knowledge gap: a gap between what thelisteners know and what they don’t know. This gap creates curiosity becausepeople are hard-wired with a desire to fill knowledge gaps.

For example, starting with a question such as “What’s the number one reason thatmost people fail to advance in their careers, working harder and longer, yet never

achieving their dreams?” gets your audience thinking and starting to formulatetheir answers. You’ve got them hooked!

In his TED talk, Simon Sinek (http://bit.ly/12MP5v9) began his speech with aseries of powerful questions:

“How do you explain when things don’t go as we assume? Or better, how doyou explain when others are able to achieve things that seem to defy all ofthe assumptions? For example: Why is Apple so innovative? Year after year,after year, after year, they’re more innovative than all their competition.And yet, they’re just a computer company. They’re just like everyone else.They have the same access to the same talent, the same agencies, thesame consultants, the same media. Then why is it that they seem to havesomething different? Why is it that Marin Luther King led the Civil RightsMovement? He wasn’t the only man who suffered a pre-civil rights America.And he certainly wasn’t the only great orator of the day. Why him? And whyis it that the Wright brothers were able to figure out control-powered,manned flight when there were certainly other teams who were betterqualified, better funded, and they achieve powered man flight, and theWright brothers beat them to it. There’s something else at play here.”

One important thing to note about asking questions is you must make sure thatyou pause after your question so that the audience has enough time to reflect onyour question. If you don’t pause after your questions, you’ll be trampling overtheir thoughts and they won’t pay attention to what you’re saying.

The final benefit of opening with a question is that it allows you to create aconnection with the audience. For example, in his winning speech at theToastmasters International World Championship of Public Speaking, DarrenLaCroix opened with the following question:

“Can you remember a moment when a brilliant idea flashed into your head?”– Darren LaCroix, 2001 World Champion of Public Speaking

If you were in this audience, you would naturally think to yourself, “Yes! I knowwhat you’re talking about!”

When your audience can relate to a question you’ve asked, you’ve successfullycreated a connection.

In your next presentation, open with a question that the audience can relate to orwith a question that creates a knowledge gap and creates curiosity in yourlisteners. Once you do this, your listeners will be hooked onto your every word!

You can deliver the perfect opening by first starting with a question that buildscuriosity, and then filling that knowledge gap by telling a story that illustrates themain point of your speech.

For example, let us say that you opened with the following question:

“What’s the number one reason that most people fail to advance in theircareers, working harder and longer, yet never achieving their dreams?”

At this point, you could immediately reveal your answer and tell the audience,“The number one reason most people fail is because they do not set goals forthemselves.”

However, as a reader of this book, you can let the listeners discover the answerrather than simply handing it to them. You can prolong their curiosity by divinginto a story that illustrates your point. For example, after asking your openingquestion, you could tell the story of your friend Jerry, who worked long hours eachnight at the office but never achieved any success. You can then reveal how Jerrydiscovered the power of goal-setting and went on to become vice president of hiscompany.

In this way, instead of simply handing your answer to your audience, you’ve letthem discover it for themselves through Jerry’s story. You’ve successfully capturedyour audience’s interest, and you’ve made an impact because they’ll rememberJerry’s story.

So, create a knowledge gap using a question and then fill the gap using acompelling story.

3. QUOTABLE QUOTES

Would you like to add credibility to your speech?

Would you build the credibility of your message by borrowing credibility from athird-party source?

Consider opening with a quote.

A short quote that illustrates your main point will create support for your speech.For example, if you are giving a speech about the need to keep things simple,then you could borrow Einstein’s credibility by starting like this:

Einstein said, “Imagination is more important … than knowledge!”

However, here are a few pointers to keep in mind when choosing your quotes:

● Shorter is sweeter: The shorter your quote, the greater the impact. Along quote will end up boring your audience.

● Make sure it’s relevant: Make sure the quote is relevant to your mainpoint, and relevant for the atmosphere. A playful quotation from HomerSimpson may not be appropriate during a tear-filled funeral.

● Check the source! Check the source’s credibility. Don’t quote Hitler ifyou’re delivering a speech about the importance of ethics!

● Quote a well-known authority: Quoting your high school friend mayplease your friend, but it’s not going to earn you extra points from theaudience. Quote someone who is familiar to everyone in the audience.

● Choose a quote that hasn’t been overused. Some quotes have beenoverused so much that audience members are tired of listening to them.Try to use a quote that audience members may not have heard before.

For example, in his speech for the 2003 Toastmasters International WorldChampionship of Public Speaking, when he talked about the importanceof dreaming, Jim Key used a quote by Martin Luther King. However,instead of going with Dr. King’s overused “I have a dream” quote, Jim Keyused another one which also fit perfectly into his speech:

Martin Luther King, one of the greatest dreamers of our age said, “Thetime is always right to do what is right!”, which means that if it wasright for us to dream as children, it’s also right for us to dream as adults.

4. INTERESTING/STARTLING STATEMENT

Dale Carnegie said, “Begin with something interesting in your first sentence. Notthe second. Not the third. The First! F-I-R-S-T! First!”

You can immediately differentiate yourself and your topic from most otherspeakers by shocking your listeners with a startling statement. For example, ifyou’re talking about the importance of avoiding fast food, you could start with thefollowing statement:

“If you eat a McDonald’s quarter pounder with cheese, you’ll instantly gainalmost half a pound of weight!”

For a statement to be shocking, it has to be something that is not commonknowledge. When you provide a fact that most people are unaware of, you’veinstantly added value to their lives and made a positive impression on them.

You don’t necessarily have to use shocking statements to get people to listen. Anintriguing statement can do an equally good job. For example:

“In 1989, when I was graduating from college, my professor told mesomething which changed my life … and it could change yours too.”

The above statement intrigues the listeners, who want to know more. It causesthem to wonder, “What did your professor say? How did it change your life? Andhow can it change my life?”

Intriguing statements create a mystery. They create knowledge gaps that theaudience feels compelled to fill.

If you can find an interesting or startling statement that backs up your speech’score message, be sure to open with it and you’ll have your listeners wrapped up inyour presentation.

5. CALL-BACK

A call-back is when you refer back to something that happened before or duringthe event. For example, in his TED talk, Sir Ken Robinson (http://bit.ly/12MPEFx)called back to the presentations that had taken place before his. He said:

There have been three themes, haven’t there, running through theconference, which are relevant to what I want to talk about. One is theextraordinary evidence of human creativity in all of the presentations thatwe’ve had and in all of the people here. Just the variety of it and the rangeof it. The second is that it’s put us in a place where we have no idea what’sgoing to happen, in terms of the future…

Later in the speech, he called back to an event that had taken place the nightbefore:

And the third part of this is that we've all agreed, nonetheless, on the reallyextraordinary capacities that children have -- their capacities for innovation.I mean, Sirena last night was a marvel, wasn't she? Just seeing what shecould do. And she's exceptional, but I think she's not, so tospeak, exceptional in the whole of childhood. What you have there is aperson of extraordinary dedication who found a talent. And my contentionis, all kids have tremendous talents.

Calling back to earlier presentations gives Ken Robinson’s speech a personalizedfeel. It lets the audience members know that the speech is customized for them,as opposed to being an off-the-shelf speech.

In your speeches and presentations, you can call back to previous speakers or toevents that took place before you spoke.

How to Close YourTED Talk (or any

other presentation)

THE RECENCY EFFECT

Recency Effect: “Given a list of items to remember, we will tend toremember the last few things more than those things in the middle. We alsotend to assume that items at the end of the list are of greater importanceor significance” – ChangingMinds.org

Because of the recency effect, the ending of your speech is just as important asthe beginning. People will remember the last thing that you say, so you want tomake sure that you spend ample time crafting a great ending to yourspeech/presentation. Here are a couple of techniques that will help you craft acompelling and memorable closing.

SIGNAL THAT YOU’RE CLOSING

Studies show that when presenters use the words, “in conclusion,” people becomemore alert. This is because the words “in conclusion” signal that the speech iscoming to an end. Audience members know that the presenter will summarize thespeech and that there may be some important follow-up tasks, so they startpaying more attention to what’s being said.

You don’t necessarily have to use the phrase “in conclusion” to grab youraudience’s attention. You can use any other phrase to signal that you are comingto the end of your presentation. You can use phrases such as: “Let’s wrap up,” “Tosummarize” and “Before I leave the stage, let me leave you with this.” Feel freeto get creative with your closing signals as long as you make it obvious that you

are closing.

SUMMARIZE YOUR MAIN POINTS

Use your closing to reemphasize your main points. The closing of your speech isyour opportunity to call-back to your major points throughout the speech in orderto reinforce them. The summary of your points should take, at most, two to threeminutes. Here’s an example from Dan Pink’s TED talk (http://bit.ly/10gmo70):

“Let me wrap up.

There is a mismatch between what science knows and what business does.And here is what science knows. One: Those 20th century rewards, thosemotivators we think are a natural part of business, do work, but only in asurprisingly narrow band of circumstances. Two: Those if-then rewardsoften destroy creativity. Three: The secret to high performance isn't rewardsand punishments, but that unseen intrinsic drive -- the drive to do things fortheir own sake. The drive to do things cause they matter”

PROVIDE HOPE FOR A BETTER FUTURE

Not only should you summarize your main points, you also should provide hope fora better future. If you’ve presented a problem that needs to be conquered, youneed to give your audience hope that it is possible to conquer it. End your speechon an uplifting note and leave your audience feeling empowered. To continueusing our previous example, after Dan Pink summarized his main points, he endedhis speech with the following:

“And here's the best part. Here's the best part. We already know this. Thescience confirms what we know in our hearts. So, if we repair this mismatchbetween what science knows and what business does, if we bring ourmotivation, notions of motivation into the 21st century, if we get past thislazy, dangerous, ideology of carrots and sticks, we can strengthen ourbusinesses, we can solve a lot of those candle problems, and maybe,maybe, maybe we can change the world. I rest my case.”

Here’s another example. Leslie Morgan Steiner (http:/bit.ly/10gmo70) ended herTED talk on domestic violence by providing hope that they could solve the

problem:

“Recognize the early signs of violence and conscientiously intervene,deescalate it, show victims a safe way out. Together we can make ourbeds, our dinner tables and our families the safe and peaceful oases theyshould be. Thank you”

LINK YOUR CONCLUSION TO THE CONFERENCE

Sir Ken Robinson not only ended his speech by providing hope for a better future,he also linked his conclusion to the TED conference. He said:

“What TED celebrates is the gift of the human imagination. We have to becareful that we use this gift wisely and that we avert some of the scenarioswe’ve talked about. And the only way we’ll do it is by seeing our creativecapacities for the richness they are and seeing our children for the hopethat they are. And our task is to educate their whole being, so they can facethe future. By the way - we may not see this future, but they will. And ourjob is to help them make something of it. Thank you very much.”

Robinson not only manages to summarize the main arguments of his speechduring his conclusion, he also manages to link it to the TED conference where heis speaking. This gives his speech a personalized feel and grabs audienceattention.

During her TED talk, Dr. Jill Taylor (http://bit.ly/14VuyZ3) also managed to endher speech by including TED’s mission statement (“ideas worth spreading”) in herclosing. She said:

“I believe that the more time we spend choosing to run the deepinner-peace circuitry of our right hemispheres, the more peace we willproject into the world, and the more peaceful our planet will be. And Ithought that was an idea worth spreading.”

If you can find a way to link your conclusion to the event where you are speaking,you will be miles ahead of most speakers. You can be assured that you’ll have lefta lasting impression on your audience.

CALL TO ACTION

What do you want your audience members to do differently as a result of listeningto your speech?

Include a clear and compelling call to action in the closing of your speech. Tellyour audience members exactly what you want them to do. If you’re presenting abusiness proposal to a group of senior managers and you want them to set up asecond meeting with you, tell them:

“As we’ve seen, this untapped market about is worth $40 million every year.We’ve seen that the rewards far outweigh the costs and that the best timeto start catering to this market is now. Having discussed this, I would liketo request a second meeting so that we can discuss how to go forward fromhere.”

What action do you want your audience to take after listening to yourpresentation?

Here are a couple of things to keep in mind when crafting your call to action:

● Be realistic about what you can expect from them. If you’re pitchinga business idea to a group of potential investors, then it’s unrealisticto expect that they will invest a million dollars into your businessimmediately. Perhaps a more realistic call to action might be to askthem to set up a second meeting so you can talk about funding. Oryou might ask them to invest in 10% of your company so that yourcompany can get off the ground and they can monitor the progressbefore they decide to fully invest in you. In any case, make sure youhave a realistic call to action.

● Include only one call to action. Don’t paralyze your audience by givingthem too many choices. Include only one clear and compelling call toaction. For example, at the end of my workshops, instead of burdeningmy audience with a list of 20 things I want them to do, I just givethem call to action, which is to head over to my website so that theycan subscribe to my free newsletter. I can then keep in constant

contact with them via my newsletter.

Normally, the first presentation is part of a series of more emails,meetings and presentations. For example, your sales presentationmight lead to a second and third meeting before the client eventuallybuys from you. However, instead of burdening your prospects with ahuge list of next steps, give them only one next step they can take sothat you can lead them to the next phase of the process.

In her TED talk on body language (http://bit.ly/13KIm7h), Amy Cuddy wraps upher speech by encouraging her audience to try power-pausing. She also gives heraudience a clear next step, which is to “spread the science”:

“So I want to ask you first, you know, both to try power posing, and also Iwant to ask you to share the science, because this is simple. I don't haveego involved in this. (Laughter) Give it away. Share it with people, becausethe people who can use it the most are the ones with no resources and notechnology and no status and no power. Give it to them because they cando it in private. They need their bodies, privacy and two minutes, and it cansignificantly change the outcomes of their life. Thank you.”

What’s the clear next step of your speech?

SELL THE BENEFITS

What benefits do audience members get as a result of acting on the wisdomreceived from your speech?

In his TED talk, Andy Puddicombe (http://bit.ly/10m1wzn) encourages audiencemembers to practice 10 minutes of mindfulness. He ends his talk by reinforcingthe benefits audience members will receive if they take just 10 minutes to focuson the present moment:

“All you need to do is to take ten minutes out a day to step back, tofamiliarize yourself with the present moment so that you get to experiencea greater sense of focus, calm and clarity in your life.”

Consider closing your speech by summarizing the benefits your audience will get ifthey act on what they have learned in your speech.

Let’s Wrap Up...You’ve studied the openings and closings of the two most important parts of thepresentation. By now, you should have a very good idea of how to open and closeyour speeches and presentations.

Let’s recap the techniques to open your TED talk. Open your talk with a:

• Story• Question• Quotation• Interesting/Startling statement• Callback

Let’s recap the techniques to close your TED talk:

Close your talk with an impact by:

• Signaling you are closing• Summarizing your main points• Linking it to the conference• Providing hope for a better future• Providing a clear call to action• Selling the benefits

Want More?The two chapters contained in this book are short samples from my detailed, 206page book, “How to Deliver a Great TED Talk”: http://amzn.to/18fD1Tn

If you enjoyed this sample, you will love the book. In this book, I’ve covered onlythe basics (the opening and closing of a speech or presentation). If you would likemore advanced tools and techniques on how to develop, design and deliver apowerful TED talk, I suggest you check out “How to Deliver a Great TED Talk”. Inthe book, you will learn:

• Craft a repeatable power phrase• Utlize the ABC-C speech structure for powerful presentations• Use rhetorical devices to spice up your speech• Create an attention-grabbing opening• Build the body of your presentation/speech• Craft a compelling closing• Use statistics to grab attention• Create a wow-moment• Bring your characters to life• Use analogies, metaphors and similes• Turn your stories into mental movies

• Build your credibility with the speech introduction• Add internal credibility to your presentation• Build an emotional connection with your audience• Use compelling visuals• Use the body language secrets of confident speakers• Use PowerPoint the right way• Arouse your audience's curiosity• Use Sir Ken Robinson and Dan Pink's techniques for adding humor• Use rhetorical questions to hook your audience into your presentation• Use the five C's of storytelling to create spell-binding stories• Deliver a dynamic TED talk (or any other presentation or speech)

Whether you are scheduled to deliver a TED talk, a business presentation or amotivational or inspiring speech, this book will teach you the techniques used bysome of the world's most powerful public speakers. Buy the Kindle/paperbackversion of the book here: http://amzn.to/18fD1TnHere’s what people are saying about the book:

“Akash has captured the best ideas, tools, and processes used by some of thebest speakers and presenters in the world. He has distilled them in to astep-by-step, easy-to-read guide that will help you discover, develop, and deliverpresentations which help you stand out from the crowd.”- Michael Davis, Speaking CPR, Certified World Class Speaking Coach

“Maybe one of the clearest books on presentations I've ever read. Incrediblysimple and easy to read but covering up a broad range of subjects. Full ofpractical tips, actual examples as well as personal experiences.”- Javier, Verified Amazon Reviewer

“Hands on book to craft a mind-blowing memorable speech”- Tania de Winnie

Yes, there is also a two star review (and twenty-one four and five star reviews atthe time of this writing). Check the book out here and decide for yourself if it’sthe something you will get value from: http://amzn.to/13NRHtc

Thanks for reading.

Akash Karia

BOOKS BY AKASH:

How to Deliver a Great TED Talk

Storytelling Techniques for Powerful Presentations

Public Speaking Mastery

Own the Room

Public Speaking Tips from the Pros

Stop Negative Thinking!

How Successful People Think Differently

How to Persuade People to Do Stuff

TED:ology

Captivate! Presentation Secrets from TED

How to Design TED Worthy Presentation Slides